Kade kneels next to a stream formed by the San Francisco Glacier, about two hours outside Santiago, Chile.

Sunday, June 11, 2017

Wat Pho (Temple of the Reclining Buddha)

After viewing the Royal Urn, we took a short taxi ride to the entrance of Wat Pho. If I had to do it again, I would make this temple complex the start of a day, and spend as much time as possible there. The Grand Palace also deserves its own day, of course. When you add on the crowds and the heat, combining the two is very challenging. Naturally, though, since they are adjacent to one another and tourists have a very limited number of days in the capital, the most common approach is to do both the same day. If you do that, get plenty of rest the night before, wear really good walking shoes, stay hydrated, put on the sunblock and a hat. And, of course, don't forget to read up on dress wear and any possible scams you could encounter in the area. Being very prepared will save you time and cut down on stress.

It was hard to get an image that even comes close to the one above. There were too people, and there was a railing that prevented you from getting beyond those columns on the left. This photo also reveals that Wat Pho is on the to-do list of world leaders and dignitaries who visit Bangkok.

Some portraits of Rama IX were on display at Wat Pho.

Click here for an amazing aerial view of Wat Pho. You will also see the Grand Palace just above it in the image. On that same Facebook page, scroll forward a couple to a wider panorama of the larger Grand Palace complex (white wall) with Wat Pho over to its left. After that, search the album, Thailand From Above, to see more stunning images. The creator of that Facebook page also has a website: Aey's Architectural and Cityscape Photography. But I would recommend going to Facebook first to find those Wat Pho and Grand Palace aerials - a little easier to find them.